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The national political conventions are a time when delegates wear silly hats and wave posters that carry the campaign slogans. But how important are the slogans this year?

I called the Kerry and Bush campaigns last week and spoke with workers in both press offices who were unsure whether there were official slogans. Kathy Roeder, a spokesperson for the Kerry-Edwards campaign, said that democrats have recently used the slogan, "Building a Stronger America," although, she says, "There may be new material that reflects our team during and after the Democratic Convention."

The Bush-Cheney campaign official slogan is, "Yes, America Can!" Early Bush commercials used the tag line, "President Bush. Steady leadership in times of change."

In certain campaigns, (slogans) can be crucial if they capture a mood of the country or a quality of the candidate or a promise to the electorate. It doesn't often happen but when it does, the slogan provides a shorthand for the entire campaign.

Teddy Roosevelt's promise of a "square deal" (Note: listen to speech) for business and labor alike in 1904 distinguished him from more conservative republicans and from the corporate scandals of his era. Then, when he ran as a third party candidate in 1916 and said he felt like a bull moose, the bull moose became the symbol of his energy and toughness.

FDR's pledge of a "new deal" for the American people captured the tremendous desire for change and fairness after the stock market crash and depression.

JFK's "Let's get America moving again" referred not only to the sluggishness of the American economy at the time but the need to confront the Soviets more aggressively and the need to replace old, tired leaders.

LBJ's "Great Society" suggested larger goals for America beyond prosperity, while Nixon's "silent majority" spoke to an entire segment of population feeling left out by fierce divisive politics of 1960s.

In modern times, I think Bush's "compassionate conservatism" in 2000 was a very successful slogan, seeming to position him differently from uncaring conservatives yet planting himself in the conservative channel.

So far, I do not see that any of the attempts at slogans on either side this year have caught on or are likely to last in history. Bush can no longer use "compassionate conservative" without being called to account for (the) gap between his promises and his actions. Nor does fighting for "a stronger America" say anything distinctive.

While I yearn for the days when conventions captured the imagination of the entire country, I still think they are important as a means of soldifying the energy of the activists, creating a sense of teamwork, and introducing the candidates and their platforms to most of the electorate, who only begin to focus at this time.

My personal desire would be for more songs like the old days.

I can still sing the refrains to: "I Like Ike" ... or "Get on a Raft with Taft" -- a rather strange song given the fact that Taft weighed 300 pounds, so it might be dangerous to share a raft with him. In the old days, the attack songs were devastating.

A refrain against Van Buren ran:

Who rules us with an iron rod?Who moves at Satan's beck and nod?Who heeds not man,Who heeds not God? Van Buren, Van Buren!

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AUTHOR INFORMATION

Al Tompkins is one of America's most requested broadcast journalism and multimedia teachers and coaches. After nearly 30 years working as a reporter, photojournalist, producer, investigative reporter, head of special investigations and News Director, Tompkins joined the Poynter Institute where he is Senior Faculty for Broadcast and Online. He is the author of "Aim for the Heart" a textbook about multimedia storytelling that has been adopted by more than 100 universities worldwide. He has taught in 49 states, Canada, Egypt, Denmark, South Africa, Iceland and the Caymans.
Tompkins is the recipient of some of journalism's highest awards including The National Emmy, the Japan Prize, The American Bar Association's Silver Gavel, The Peabody (group award), 7 National Headliner Awards, The Robert F. Kennedy Award and The Iris Award. He was inducted into the Kentucky Journalism Hall of Fame and honored with The Governor's Award from the National Academy of Television Arts and Sciences.
Tompkins helped to author the national codes of ethics for both the National Press Photographers Association and the Radio and Television Digital News Association.